On-premise refers to deploying software and handling it in-house. In eCommerce, this means you would host your website on your server without the involvement of any third-party company at any point in time. The opposite of the on-premise model is a cloud-based eCommerce platform, where a third-party provider hosts your website for you.
When you go for a self-hosted or on-premise model, you enjoy these major benefits:
- Stringent security: The best part of the on-premise model is taking all necessary measures to ensure robust security. Since there is no involvement of third-party companies, the probability of data breaches stays low as well.
- Optimal performance: You can keep your site performance at its peak by instructing your server and network administrators to optimize it regularly.
- Complete control: When you are on the on-premise model, you have full control of your website and don’t have to rely on a third-party company to make the required changes for the website modifications.
Irrespective of how amazing these benefits sound, they come at a price. It requires a lot of investment in terms of money, infrastructure, and human resources to handle the operation well.